Guide mechanism for metal drawing press



Dec. 6, 1960 E. K. JOHANSEN GUIDE MECHANISM FOR MTAL DRAWING PRESS 9 Sheets-Sheec. 2

Filed June 7, 1954 u uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu 4.

INVENTOR; EINAR K. JOHANSEN Dec. 6, 1960 Fiied June 7. 1954 E. K. JOHANSEN GUIDE MECHANISM FOR MTAL DRAWING PRESS FIG.4

9 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTR.

EINAR K. JOHANSEN Dec. 6, 1960 E. K. JOHANSEN 2,962,993

' GUIDE MECHANISM FOR MTAL DRAWING PRESS Filed June 7. 1954 9 SheetsSheet 5 FIG.6

' IN V EN TOR.

EINAR K. JOHANSEN ATT'YS Dec. 6, 1960 E. K. JOHANSEN 2,962,993

GUIDE MECHANISM FOR MTAL DRAWING PRESS Fi1ed June 7, 1954 9 SheetsSheet 6 6 FIG.7

INVENTOR: EINAR K. JOHANSEN ATT'YS Dec. 6,1960 E. K. JOHANSEN 2,962,993

GUIDE MECHANSNI FOR MTAL DRAWING PRESS Filed June 7, 1954 9 SheetsSheet 7 FIG.8 9

IIO

1 N V EN TOR.

EINAR K. JOHANSEN ATT'YS Dec. 6, 1960 E. K. JOHANSEN 2,962,993

GUIDE MECHANISM FOR MTAL DRAWING PRESS Filed June 7, 1954 9 SheetsSheet 9 FIG. IO

8 INVENTO. EINAR K. JOHANSEN ATT'YS GUIDE MECHANISM FOR -MTAL DRAWNG PRESS Einar K. Johansen, Oak Park, 111., assigner, by mesne assignments, to U.S. Industries, Inc., a corporation cf .Delaware Filed June 7, 1954, Ser. No. 434,854

3 Clams. {Cl.11338} %sponding gibs or gid e.surfaces on the slide. The pres- .ent.novel formof {guide means eliminates such gibs as well as the attendant expense involved in machining the rn.

.As :far as a single action press is concerned, a 4:point ;press .can now be a 2-point ,press by using the present invention with all of the advahtages of a '4-point press.

Furthermore, the present invention provides for a greater span of the guides because they are longer than has been possible heretofore by the use of gibs with the result that the products produced by the press are more acourate.

In multiple action presses one great disadvantage has been that an adjustment of the blank holder for proper .alignment would almost invariably cause the inner slide Etc) b.eome out of alignment because the inner slide was guided by the outer slide. 'This disadvantage is overcome because the present invention provides guide means for both slides independently. Still further, the present invention ,enables the blank holder 'to be adjusted by .pbwr with a fine hand adjustment without aflecting the .Jalignment of the inner slide.

In view of the foregoing, it is a principal object et the present invention to provide a novel form et guide means for metal working presses which is designed to overc0me the disadvantages enumerated above which are present in the conventional structures of such presses.

Another object of the invention is to provide a form of guide means for the slides of metal working presses Which .is adaptable for use either with single action or with multiple action presses.

' A, further object is to provide a novel form of guide means for the reciprocating slides of metal working presses wherein there is present a greater guide span than has been possible heretofore Whereby a. more acclir'ate product will result.

Still another object is to provide a novel form et guide ineans to guide the reciprocating movements of the slides 'in'a metal working press wherein the alignmentdf the slides inay be easily accomplished and whcrein the 3lignment of one slideof a multiple action press may be correted or adjusted without aiecting the alignment of theoth r slide.

. A s till further object of the invention is to,provide a United States Fatet1tflO" guide means for guiding the reciprocating movements Of theslide or slides in a single or multiple action metal 2,992,993 Patented Dec. ,6, 1960 working press which are independent of each other and which include the provision of guide rods for each slide, thereby eliminating gibs which have been necessary heretotore.

Another object of the invention is to provide guide mcans which include guide rods movable with the slide or slides of a single or multiple action metal working press, wherein each guide rod is separately guided and wherein independent adjustments of the individual slides with respect to the guide rods may be accomplished.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying dratwings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a single action press embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view through the .p,res s of Fig. 1 taken along the plane of lime 22 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of a detail illustrated in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a view partly in front elevation and partly in section wherein the Section is taken along the plane of lime 44 of'Fig. 4; g

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a double action press embodying. the present invention with parts thereof broken away and shown in section for the sake of clarity;

Fig. 6 is a double sectional view of the press shown in Fig. 5 wherein the lefthand half of the figure is a section taken along the planent lime 66 of Fig. 7 and wherein the righthand half is a section taken along the plane of lin 6a6a of;Fig. 7.;

Fig. 7 is a view partly in front elevation and partly in section of a double action press wherein the section is taken along the plane of lime 77 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a view partly in side elevation and .partly in section of a triple action press embodying the present invention wherein the sectional portion is taken along the plane of lino 8-8 of Fig. 10;

Fig. 9 is a vertical sectional view taken along the plane of lime 99 of: Fig. 8, and

Fig. 10 is a vertical sectional view taken along the plane of line 10-10 of Fig. 8.

As stated above, the invention relates prima-rily and specifically to a novel form of guide means for -guidihg the reciprocating movements of the slide or slides in a single action or multiple action metal working .press. Figs. 1 t0 4 inclusive of the draWings illustrate one form of single action press and it will be understood that the partioular form of press iI-lustrated is not intended to be limiting since the principle involved in the invention is applicable to any type of press wherein reciprocating slides must be guided in their movements.

The single action press shown in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive is a typical bottom drive press having a pair of opposed uprights land 2 connected at the top portions thefeof by the connecting beam or cross member 3. A bed 4 is provided for the purpose of supporting a die thereon which is adapted to cooperate :with a complementar die or punch on the draw slide.

A crosshead 5 is located at each side of the machine and is mounted upon guide rods 6 at the front of the press and similar guide rods 7 at the rear of the press. Each guide rod 6 has a portion du of smaller diametert its lower end, thereby providing a shoulder 6b against which the upper part of thecrosshead -5 may abat. A collar 8 mounted on the smaller portion-6nd guide rod 6 bears npwardly against the lower part of the crosshead 5, thereby to maintain the crosshead and guide .fod.iu assembled relation.

The rear guide'.,rods 7 are likev'sfleuformed ,With, portion 7a 0.f smaller diameter fo1ining'a.shouldrlbafld each has a collar 9 so that the crosshead 5 is held betWen{ 3 the shoulder 7b and collar 9. When the crosshead is caused to reciprocate as will be presently seen, the guide rods 6 and 7 will be carried therewith.

Theslide is of the usual construction and is indicated by the numeral 10. In this case, however, the slide is not provided with any gibs for cooperation with guiding gibs on the frame, but rather is mounted on the guide rods 6 and 7. It will be noted from Figs. 2, 3 and 4 that the front and rear guide rods 6 and 7 are each provided with a threaded portion 11 and 12 respectively, for engagement with the slide 10. The means for adjustably mounting the slide on the guide rods for adjustment with respect thereto is well known and since there is one such mounting means for each rod, a description of one will sufiice for all. Each guide rod has associated therewith a housing 13 mounted on the upper part of the slide 10 which has an inwardly extending fiange 14 overlying a shoulder 15 formed in an internally threaded member 16 which is provided at its upper end with bevel gear teeth 17. The member 16 is thus free to rotate but since it is in threaded engagement with its associated guide rod 6 or 7, the rotation thereof will cause the slide to move with respect thereto.

A suitable drive mechanism of a well known construction is mounted on the upper part of the slide 10 and includes a bevel gear 18 mounted on a shaft 19 for each of the bevel gears 17. Thus, when the shaft 19 is rotated together with the bevel gear 18 thereon, the engagement thereof with the bevel gear 17 will cause the member 16 to rotate and to be moved with respect to its associated guide rod. Since the member 16 is carried by the slide 10, the rotational movement thereof will cause areciprocating movement of the slide with respect to the guide rods so that the slide may be adjusted with respect to the bed for the die setting operation to insure the proper pressure between the upper and lower dies.

Each of the guide rods 6 and 7 is provided with a plurality of guide members or bearings which are stationary on a suitable part of the frame so that the rods may be guided properly in their reciprocating movement. One such guide member or bearing for each rod is indicated generally at 20 and is located in the cross member or crown 3 of the press. Each bearing includes preferably an extended tubular portion 21 having therein a bushing 22 in sliding contact with the rod. A cap 23 is positioned over the upper end of each rod 50 as to prevent dirt, dust and the like from entering the bearing at the upper side thereof.

Another guide member or bearing 24 is fixed to the frame below the slide for each of the guide rods. This bearng member includes an elongated tubular portion 25 within which a bushing 26 is in sliding contact with the lower portion of each guide rod.

It is thus evident that the guide span between the upper guide bearings 20 and lower guide bearings 24 is much greater than that which has been possible heretofore when cooperating gibs were provided on the slide and frame.

The slide together with its guide rods is caused t reciprocate by customary drive means common to presses of this character. Thus, the drive means disclosed herein are located in the bottom of the press and include an eccentric strap 27 at each side of the press pivotally connected at its upper end by a pin 28 to the crosshead 5. The lower end of eccentric strap 27 has a portion 29 surrounding an eccentric member 30 on a shaft 31. A150 mounted on the shaft 31 is a driving gear 32 in mesh with a pinion 33 on the shaft 34 which also has a gear 35 thereon driven by a pinion 36. This drive pinion 36 is mounted on the shaft 37 of a flywheel 38 forming a part of a clutch 39 and brake 40. A suitable motor 41 provides power to rotate shaft 37 by means of belts 42, whereupon rotation of shaft 31 will reciprocate the accentnestrap 27 and crosshead connected thereto. Reciprocaton of the crosshead at each side of the machine will 4 carry with it the four guide rods and the slide mounted thereon.

It will thus be observed that the gibs heretofore used for many years have been completely eliminated and the reciprocating movement of the slide is guided entirely by the guide rods on which the slide is mounted in cooperation with the guide bearings mounted on the frame. The usual and customary counterbalancing means may be positioned in the crown of the press as indicated generally at 43 and comprises a cylinder 44 mounted on the crown, a piston 45 having a piston rod 46 connected thereto and mounted on the slide as at 47. Thus, reciprocation of the slide will cause the piston 45 to reciprocate within the cylinder 44 in the usual manner.

The application of the invention herein to a double action press is illustrated in Figs. 5, 6 and 7 whcrein the press frame may be of the usual and conventional construction including uprights 48 at each end thereof and the crossbearn or crown 49 at.the top. The double action press embodying the invention has been illustrated as being of the conventional bottom drive construction although it will be understood that a top drive can be utilized if desired.

The onter or clamp slide is indicated by the numeral 50 and is mounted on or suspended from an upper crosshead structure 51. The enter slide 50 is mounted on the upper crosshead 51 by means of a plurality of threaded rods 52 secured to the crosshead 51 and extending downwardly therefrom to threadedly engage upper and lower collars 53 and 54. There may be four such assembles, one at each corner of the outer slide 50 to enable the outer slide 50 to be adjusted by hand with respect to the upper crosshead 5l.

The upper crosshead carrying the outcr slide is mounted on a plurality of guide rods 55 for reciprocation therewith. In the illustrated embodiment there 'are four such guide rods 55, one at each corner of the crosshead 51. The upper crosshead is also adjustably mounted on the guide rods 55 by means of a power operated adjusting device similar to that described above with respect to the single action press. In the present instance a worm gear 56 having an internally threaded sleeve 57 is secured or mounted upon the crosshead 51 by means of an enter sleeve 58 which permits sleeve 57 and worm gear 56 to rotate. The sleeve 57 engages a threaded section 59 on the guide rod 55, whereupon rotation of the worm wheel 56 will cause the associated part of the crosshead to be raised or lowered with respect to the guide rod. Power may be supplied by any suitable means for accomplishing this purpose, such as by a shaft 60 on which there is a worm 61 in mesh with the worm gear 56. Since there are four such assemblies, there will be a common drive means which may rotate all four worm gears simultaneously, thereby to raise and lower the upper crosshead 51 and the outer slide 50 connected thereto for adjustment with respect to the bed of the press.

Each guide rod 55 extends throughout the height of the press and is guided for reciprocating movement in an upper guide bearing 62 in the crown of the press, an intermediate guide bearing 63 and a lower guide bearifig 64. At each side of the press the front and rear guide rods 55 are suitably secured at their lower ends to a crosshead 65. As will be seen hereinafter, suitable drive means are provided to reciprocate the crosshead 65 which will thereupon carry with it the guide rods 55 as well as the upper crosshead 51 and enter slide 50.

Again, the customary form of counterbalancing means may be provided for the outer slide consisting essentially of a plurality of rods 66 extending upwardly from the slide on each of which is mounted a piston 67 adapttad to reciprocate within a cylinder 68 in the crown of the press during the reciprocating movement of the slide.

The inner slide 69 is mounted for reciprocating m'o've: ment within the outer slide except that in the present -sleeve member 73 is associated with each threaded rod 71. The gear 72 and its sleeve 73 are free to rotate about the rod 71 :but are maintained in contact with the upper surface of the inner slide 69 by means of a retaining collar 7.4. Thus, rotation of the gear'72 associated with each rod 71 will cause the inner slide 69 to be raised and lowered with respect to the upper crosshead 70 on which -it is mounted.

The crosshead 70 is mounted upon a plurality et guide rods 75 and in the mbodiment shown there is one suCh guide rod"75 at each corner of the crosshead 70. A threaded portion 76 on each guide rod 75 is received within the crosshead 70 which is secured in place thereon by means of the upper and lower collars 77 and 78.

Each guide rod 75 'is guidedin its reciprocating movemnts by a plurality of guide bearings secured or fixed on suitable parts of the main frame. Each guide rod has an upper guide 'bearing 79 in the crown of the press, an intermediate guide bearing 80 below the crosshead 70, and a lower guide 'bearing 81. To counterhalancethe inner slide, th: customary counterbalmoing means may be provided consisting of a plurality of upwardly extending rods 82 on each of which there 'is mounted a piston 83 adapted to recipr'ocate within acylinder 84 in the crown of thepress.

.A lower crosshead 85 receives and is connected to the front and rear guide rods 75 at each side et the press. Suitable and wellsknown drive means is caused to reciprocate the crosshead 85 in timed relation with the reciprocation .of the brosshead 65 for the outer slide so that both the outer and inner slides as well as the guide rods 55 and 75, respectively, upon which they are mounted will also reciprocate in their respective guide bearings.

The drive means for reciprocating the slides may include any well-known drive arrangements heretofore used for presses of this character. It is sufiicient for preent purposes to point ont mcrely the salient features of the drive means which includes a drive shaft '86 at each side of the machine which has an eccentric 87 mounted adjacent the outer end thereof. This eccentric is connected to a crosshead 88 so that rotation of shaft 86 will cause the crosshead .88 at each side of the machine to reciprocate. A linkage.arrangement including links 89 and 90 connects the crosshead 88 with uprights 91 extending upwardly from the lower crosshead 65 associated with the outcrslde. A.suitable power source 92 drives a chain of gears 93 -to rotate.each shaft.86, Whereupon the crosshead 88 will reciprocate and will in turn reciprocate the :crosshead 65. The linkage arrangement is provided for ;the .purpose -of .causing a dwell in the outer slide in its lowermost position during the drawing operation performed by the inner slide.

Another eccentric 94 adjacent the inner and of shaft 86 has an eccentric strap 95 connected by means of a pin 96 to the lower crosshead 85 of the inner slide assembly. Rotation of shaft 86 therefore will also cause the crosshead 85, guide rods 75 and the inner slide mounted thereon to reciprocate in properly timed relation with the reciprocating movement of the outer slide.

Two of the main advantages obtained in the use of the present invention in connection with a double action press will immediately become apparent when it is noted that the customary gibs, not only between the outer slide and the frame but also between the inner and outer slides, are completely eliminated. The elimination of these gibs permite a greater guide span between the upper and lower -guide beariflgs of each -of the guide rods thanhas bei possible heretofore by "the use of gibSL Furthermor, since the inner slide was ;formerly guided by,gibs on the outer slide, it is apparent that an adjustment of the-enter slide to bring it into alignment would thereupoh move the inner slide out of alignment and vice versa.

These disadvantages are completely overcome in the present invention because both the inner and outerslides are guided independently of the other so that an adjustment of one slide for proper alignmet will have no efiect upon the alignment of the other slide.

Figs. 8,9 and 10 illustrate the application of the present invention to a triple action press. In the partict 1lar press shown there is an outer clamp slide and -an inner cemed is the mounting and location of the outer and inner slides andthe modification of the drive means to provide a dwell in the upper draw slide at the bottom of its stroke.

In these latter figures of the drawings the press is composed of the spaced uprights 97 at each side of the-press connected at their upper ends by acrossbeamor crown member 98. The outer or clamp slide is shown in Fig. 9 and is indicated by the numefal 99. This outer slide is mounted upon an upper crosshead 100 by mean s of threaded rods 101 extending downwardly thtarefrom and which are received by suitable opnings in the slide 99. Upper and lower internally threaded coilars 102 and-1'03 supportthe slide 99 for movement with the IUpper crosshead 100 and also enable the slide to be adjusted with respect thereto. 7

The upper crosshead 100 is mounted upon a piuraliiy of guide rods 104 in a manner similar to that de-scribe above with respect to the double action press. There' is a guide rod 104 at each corner of the crosshead 100 each of which has a threaded portion 105 with which is associated a worm gear 106 having an intemlly threaded portion 107 engaging the threads 105. The gear arrangement 106 and 107 is mounted for rotation with respect to the guide rod 104 and is mounted upon the crosshead 100 by means of a retaining collar 108. I

The guide rods 104 are mounted in suitabdeguidebetings for reciprocation therein. An upper guide bearing 109 is located in the crown and a lower guide bearifig 110 is mounted upon the main -frame. Each rodthen extends downwardly through and is guided by the bed 111 and the front and rear guide rods at each side ofthe press are mounted in a lower crosshead 112; This brosshead 112 is caused to reciprocnte by a suitabl6 drive niechanismwhereupon the upper crosshead 100 and outer slide 99 mounted thereon will also be caused .to recipro cate Suitahle counterbalancng means are also provided in the form of cylinders 113 mounted. in the press" crown within which pistons 114 may reciprocate. The pistons 114 have piston rods 115 connected thereto and with the slide 99.

The inner draw slide above the bed 111 is indicated at 116 in Fig. 10 and is mounted upon an upper crosshead 117 through the medium of the downwardly extending threaded rods 118. The inner slide 116 has associated therewith a power driven adjusting mechanism which inoludes the customary worm gear 119 and internally threaded portion 120 and the retaining collar 121. Rotation of the gear 119 will thereupon cause the slide 116 to move with respect to the crosshead 117 and to be adjusted for proper alignment.

The crosshead 117 is mounted upon a plurality of guide rods 122 one at each corner thereof. Each guide rod 122 has a threaded portion 123 thereon to threadedly =reve the upper and lower retaining collars 124 and 125. Thus, the upper crosshead 117 is adjustably .mounted upon the reciprocating guide rods 122.

The guide rods 122 for the inner slide are also mounted ,in a plurality of vertically spaced guide bearings such as the upper guide bearing 126 in the press crown, the intermediate guide bearing 127 and the lower guide bearing the bed upon a plurality of arms 131 eccentncafly mounted upon crank portions 132 of a drive shaft 133. A main gear 134 for the lower slide is mounted upon each. end of shaft 133 and each is driven by a pinion 135 mounted -at each end of a shaft 136. An intermediate gear 137 is also mounted upon shaft 136 and i s driven from a suitable power source in timed relation with the movements of the other slides so that the lower slide 130 may be caused to reciprocate and perform a drawing operation during the dwell period of the upper draw slide 116.

, -This mechanism is conventional and it is illustrated herein primarily to show application of the novel guide means for the upper slides to a triple action press.

4 The press as shown in Figs. 8, 9 and embodies a -specific type of drive mechanism, the operation of which is described and claimed in my copcnding application Serial No. 289,143 filed May 21, 1952 now Patent No. 2,827,870 of March 25, 1958. For this reason only a brief description of the drive means will be presented here.

An enter slide crosshead 138 is provided at each side of the press which is connected by means of an arm 139 to an eccentric strap 140 surrounding an eccentric 141 on shaft 142. A main gear 143 is mounted upon shaft 142 at each side of the press so that rotation thereof will cause the crosshead 138 to reciprocate. A suitable linkage arrangement is connectcd at one end to the crosshead 138 and at the other end to a rock shaft 144 which has mounted thereon rocker members 145. The crosshead 112 is thus caused to reciprocate by the rock shaft 144 actuated by the gear 143 because of its connection with the rocker members 145. As mentioned above, reciprocafion of the crosshead 112 at each side of the press carries with it the outer or blank holder slide 99 and the upper crosshead 100 on whichitis mounted.

The inner slide is caused to operate by means of an mm 146 at each side of the press each of Which is connected at its upper end by means of a pin 147 to the inner slide crosshead 129. The lower end of arm 146 is provided with an eccentric strap 148 which surrounds an eccentric 149 on a shaft 150. This latter shaft is caused to rotate by a-gear 151 mounted thereon. Rotatien et shaft.l50 through the eccentric 149 thereon and 8 arm 146 will cause the crosshead 129 and the inner slide mounted on the guide rods 122 to reciprocate in properly timed relation with the movcment of the other slides.

It will again be noted that the guide rods 104 and 122 are considerably longer than the gibs which have heretofore been used as guiding surfaces for the reciprocating movement of the slides. The fact that these guide rods may be guided in bearings spaced apart between the upper and lower ends thereof provides a greater guide span than has heretofore been possible. Finally, it will be observed that alignmcnt of either slide may be efiected without aflecting the alignment of the other slide. This follows from the fact that with the present invention the inner slide is no longer guided in its reciprocafion by the outer slide but rather is guided by independent means in the form of guide rods as above described.

Changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangement of parts from those disclosed herein without in any way departing from the spirit of the invention or sacrificng any of the attendant advantages thereof, provided, however, that such changes fall within the scope of the claims appcnded hereto.

The invention is hereby claimed as follows:

l. A metal working press comprising, a trame, a plurality of upper and lower spaced and aligned bearing mcmbers fixed on said frame, a plurality et guide rods, each of said rods being slidably mounted in a pair of said aligned bearing members, a crosshead secured to said guide rods between said upper and lower bearing members, means to reciprocate said crosshead and guide rods, and a slide member mounted on said guide rods in spaced relation to said crosshead but also between the upper and lower bearing members therefor for movement with said rods, whereby the movement of said slide will be guided by said guide rods moving in said bearing members. v

2. A metal working press as defined in claim 1 and which includes interengaging adjusting means on said slide and each of said guide rods for independently adjusting said slide with respect to said rods.

3. A metal working press as defined in claim 2 and in which said adjusting means includes retaining means mounted on said slide, and sleeves rotatably mounted in said retaining means and threadedly engaged with said rods between said upper and lower bearings.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,373,572 Smith Apr. 5, 1921 1,444,650 Allen Feb. 6, 1923 1,632,462 Candee lune 14, 1927 1,879,510 Rode Sept. 27, 1932 1,945,992 Boblett Feb. 6, 1934 2,321,325 Sherman June 8, 1943 2,378,062 Byerlein lune 12, 1945 2,522,746 Byerlein -1 Sept. 19, 1950 2,532,320 Maussnest Dec. 5, 1950 2,592,152 Johansen Apr. 8, 1952 

